Frigid
by ImmortalCoelacanth
Summary: The water was cold, so very cold. (Contains spoilers for the Arctic Cruise, read at your own discretion!)


**AN: Welp I just beat the Arctic Cruise and MAN that was fun! You all know how my muse is at this point so behold, an alternate ending to the third act!**

 **Of course spoilers are ahead so choose wisely on whether to read this or not!**

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Hat Kid had never hated herself more than she did at this very moment. She utterly despised every _stupid_ decision she had made up to this point. Noticing the Time Piece on an iceberg and deciding the best option would be to use a boat to get it, _hijacking_ the cruise ship and steering it towards the iceberg, _crashing_ it on the iceberg-

She had sunk the ship.

In her attempt to collect the Time Piece she had rammed the ship into a nearby iceberg and doomed dozens of innocent lives.

And it was all her fault.

Around her she could faintly hear the other inhabitants of the boat screaming and fleeing for their lives as the ice cold water rushed in through the broken hull. The ship had turned on its side, throwing debris and furniture everywhere, which made finding an accessible exit nearly impossible.

The situation was made worse when an explosion rocked the room she was currently in, throwing people and luggage everywhere. Unfortunately luck seemed to frown on the hatted child as a piece of luggage slammed into her, momentarily knocking her unconscious.

When she awoke everyone had been fleeing the sinking ship, and when she tried to get up and join them she realized she could not move due to one of the larger pieces of baggage that had landed on her tiny body, crushing her and holding her down.

So there she lay, pinned under a heavy piece of luggage, as the water slowly rose around her.

It was so cold.

She could feel the icy waves lapping at her legs, easily bypassing her clothes to sink into her skin. Slowly, her legs began to grow numb, her waist soon suffering the same fate as the water continued to rise.

 _It was so cold._

"KID!" A familiar voice shouted, making her open her eyes and look around. Suddenly the heavy luggage was shoved off of her and she was scooped up into a pair of purple arms.

Wait... _purple_? That meant...

"Snatcher." She wheezed, blue lips trembling as she tried to speak as best she could in her partially frozen state. Tired eyes looked upwards and she found herself meeting the concerned gaze of her contractually obligated bff.

Not that he would ever admit to being worried about her.

"I thought you were in a box." She mumbled, snuggling closer to the concerned shadow. He was so _warm_ and _fluffy_ , she could fall asleep like this...

"You gotta stay awake kid." Snatcher said, shaking the child to keep her conscious. He remember how badly he wanted to sleep, trapped in that freezing basement, and if the kid fell asleep now...

It was unlikely she would ever wake up again.

She groaned and tried to bury herself in the warm fluff around his neck. Her stiff, cold fingers found refuge in the warm hair, fur, whatever it was, and she sighed in relief, not noticing how one of Snatcher's eyes was twitching.

Typically the shadow would have ripped her away from him, shrieking about personal space and how much he hated hugs, but this was not a typical situation. The kid had been moments away from _dying_ , and was still very much at risk.

Especially with the boat still sinking...

Snatcher sighed and placed one hand upon the shivering child's back, holding her in place while he made his way through the halls and, hopefully, towards an accessible exit. Unfortunately more and more of the boat was filling with water so most of the door were now-

Snatcher blinked, taking in the sight before him. There was a giant hole in the side of the ship, probably from where the boat had hit an iceberg.

That would work.

"Don't worry kiddo, I'm gonna get you out of here." Even though he wanted to rush to the exit he took his time, scared that the cold winds would make the child in his arms sicker.

Hat Kid sighed softly and glanced down at the rising waters below them, just barely noticing a seal floating on a piece of debris...

Wait, there were other people on the boat...

"The others!" She shouted, jolting upright and scaring Snatcher in the process. "We have to go back!"

"No way kid, it's too dangerous!" Snatcher argued. "The boat is sinking too fast!"

"Then I'll do it, it's _my_ fault all this happened in the first place!" The child retorted, squirming so she could escape the shadow's grip. Unfortunately this caused her to fall into the icy waters below for a moment before he scooped her back up again.

Once again cuddled close to the annoyed shadow, shuddering the entire time. "So cold..."

"Kid you can't go running off, you'll _freeze_ to death out there!" Snatcher barked, now continuing to make his way towards the massive crack in the side of the ship.

"I thought you didn't care about me." Hat Kid joked, smirking up at the worried shadow. "You scared about me dying?"

"NO! I just, uh, don't want you to die so _pathetically_ before I get my revenge on you messing up my forest and my vacation!" He retorted, looking off to the side so she would not get the chance to see the fear in his eyes, the blatant concern and worry.

"Then help me, help me save everyone from my mistake." She pleaded, looking up at Snatcher with wide, watery blue eyes.

The shadow growled. There was no way in the world he was risking the kid's life

Hat Kid sniffled and wiped her eyes.

Seconds later the duo were off, soaring back into the depths of the sinking ship. The hatted child was using her top hat to help track down whoever had been left behind or had been unable to escape while Snatcher did his best to keep her out of the freezing waters below.

Almost immediately the duo ran into one of the Conductor's several grandchildren, the small bird chirping in fear as he ran back and forth on the piece of luggage that had been his salvation.

The hatted child jumped out of Snatcher's arms, ignoring his startled yelp, and landed in front of the tiny bird. She picked him up, smiling when he let out a happy chirp, and jumped back up towards the shadow. When she was secure in his arms she plopped the tiny, feathered creature into the fluff around Snatcher's neck, watching as he immediately hid himself within the fluff.

The child laughed at the adorable sight, making the shadow growl. "C'mon brat, let's keep looking."

They continued their journey through the destroyed ship, dodging debris, explosions, and destroying whatever obstacles were in their way. However perhaps it would be better to say that _Snatcher_ handled all of these challenges while Hat Kid cheered him on.

Though there was no denying the way his chest puffed up with pride at her praise.

In no time at all Snatcher, his arms full of seals and children, floated out of the crack in the boat he had originally intended to leave out of and deposited his passengers into a nearby lifeboat, although the birds were more than a little upset they had to leave the warmth of his fluff.

"Alright." He wheezed once the last one was out. "Now to get you to safety-"

"Nope!" Hat Kid interrupted, watching the lifeboat row off towards the few others. "We have to make sure there's no one else inside!"

"You're lucky I feel like humoring you." The shadow growled, soaring up to the "top" of the ship that he could now see was tilted sideways. He could easily spot several others seals, making him groan.

Today was going to be a _long_ day.

Moments later the shadow was soaring down towards yet another lifeboat, carrying even more seals and some other passengers. Unfortunately this trip had been a bit more stressful since a mustached jar had tried to pick a fight with his kiddo, leading to Snatcher debating on whether to drop the annoying creature into the ocean below them.

It was only the kiddo's puppy dog eyes that stopped him.

 _That jar better thank her later..._

"Hey kid!" An owl shouted once they reached the boat. "The Conductor is still inside looking for his grandkids!"

Snatcher opened his mouth to argue, already knowing what the child would demand of him, but a stern yank of the fluff around his neck made him yelp instead. "Ouch kid! What the heck?!"

"We're helping him, no buts about it!"

"Assaulting me again." The shadow grumbled as he floated down to the deck, looking for an entrance into the ship. "I should get a restraining order for you, kid."

"But we're bffs," Hat Kid whined, looking up at him with those puppy dog eyes again. "You can't get a restraining order against your bff!"

"Just watch me." He grumbled once again, smirking as he caught sight of an opening.

In almost no time at all Hat Kid managed to spot a familiar angry bird perched on an indentation in the ceiling. Ice had begun to gather on his feathers and he was noticeably shivering in the freezing temperatures.

His feathers would have only helped a little bit in fighting off the frigid conditions he was in.

"Lass!" He cried out, a toothy grin appearing on his face as he caught sight of the hatted child and the shadow. "Yer here!"

"C'mon Conductor, let's get out of here!" She shouted, reaching a hand out towards the pointy bird.

The Conductor hesitantly stepped forward, nervously glancing at the demonic creature that held the child he had previously fought against. When the shadow extended the same arm the child was in, he clung to it, shuddering when he was pulled closer to the spooky creature's chest.

 _Now to get out of here..._

Snatcher smirked and glanced over at the glass covering that the Conductor had been resting on, easily remembering just where he had seen it previously on the boat. A plan quickly formed in his mind and he started charging up energy in one of his claws, ignoring the kiddo's questioning pokes.

A quick blast of his magic easily shattered the structure, creating yet another exit he happily used.

The trio emerged from the sinking ship to the cheerful cries of the other passengers that only grew louder once the somewhat chilly bird was placed in the lifeboat with the others.

The cheerful shouting was interrupted when the announcement system turned on with a broken, static filled noise. A gruff voice laced with a combination of sorrow and passion filled the air. "Don't wait up for me, pup. Get in a boat and scram. This is my dang ship, and I'll go down with it."

"You have to be kidding me!" The shadow snarled. "He's a _walrus_ , are you telling me he can't swim?!"

"Snatcher!" Hat Kid called out, looking up to him once again, but he already understood the unspoken question.

For what would hopefully be the final time the duo set off, the hatted child using her top hat to guide them back towards the crack in the ship they had originally emerged from. As they soared through the air a single shout rang out behind them.

"Wait, ye wanna save HIM?" The Conductor shouted, shock easily heard in his voice.

"We went back for you, didn't we?" Snatcher snarked back, immediately shutting the bird up.

"The ship is sinking pretty quickly." Hat Kid mumbled as she noticed how much higher the water had gotten during their rescue mission. "What if we can't reach him in time?"

The shadow winced at the sorrowful tone in her voice. "Don't worry kiddo, I _know_ we'll save him, and then everything will be kittens and rainbows, or whatever you kids think being happy is."

She laughed, making Snatcher smile softly to himself.

The shadow found himself following the same path he had during their first rescue mission and was not at all surprised when he found the Captain resting atop a small patch of ice in one of the flooded rooms, still smoking his two cigarettes.

"There he is!" The child cried, catching the attention of the Captain who looked up at the duo with an expression of pure surprise on his face.

"What-" The walrus began to say, but when cut off when Snatcher scooped him up into his other arm.

The shadow dipped in the air, hissing as the extra weight made his arm throb in pain. "Geeze, someone needs to lay off the takeout!"

"Hey!" The Captain barked, instinctively reaching up to grab on to the fluff around the shadow's neck, making him yelp. "I didn't ask you to pick me up, you soggy noodle!"

"You guys, we gotta go!" Hat Kid cried, stopping the argument that had just barely begun. "The ship is sinking!"

Snatcher paused, now realizing that the child was right and that the water had already covered one of the exits of the room they were in. He soared back out the way he came, occasionally smashing into a wall as he went. Ice still fell from the ceiling and the occasional explosion still broke out, but he did his best to push past all these obstacles and get back to the only viable exit!

 _Finally,_ he reached the crack in the side of the ship and practically flung himself out of it, sighing in relief since the rescue mission was _finally over_. However his relief was soon replaced with rage when he noticed something missing.

The lifeboat was gone.

"They _left_." The shadow hissed, feeling the fluff around his neck puff up in aggravation. "They left you behind-"

"Just keep looking." Hat Kid interrupted, a knowing smile on her face as she looked towards and iceberg not too far in front of them.

Snatcher made his way past the ice berg and found the lifeboat resting not too far away, the occupants cheering when they noticed the shadow floating above them. He cautiously lowered himself towards the boat, not wanting to lose his balance and accidentally dunk the kiddo in the icy waters below him.

Finally he was able to set both the Captain and Hat Kid down, exhausted beyond belief. "Kid, never ask me for _anything_ ever again, you got it?"

The hatted child giggled and blew a kiss at the disgruntled shadow. She opened her mouth to continue teasing him, but was cut off when the Captain started speaking.

"Pup, why wouldn't you just let me go down with my ship? I can't drown, but at least I could pretend to-"

"Shut it!" Snatcher barked, glaring at the walrus below him.

The dammed creature practically _oozed_ sorrow, and it was sickening! It also unfortunately reminded him of how he had felt all those years ago, further aggravating him, but there was one major difference between himself and the Captain. He had chosen to embrace his anger and live using that, while this _pathetic_ creature had chosen sorrow.

It was only the discovery of the fate of his subjects that had provided something to ground himself with, something to help remind him that there were other things in life one could live for.

 _His forest, his village, his minions, his..._

But this _idiot_ was willing to throw all of that away, and it infuriated the shadow beyond measure.

"If the kid thinks you deserve to be saved then you _deserve it_." Snatcher began, ignoring the grinning child standing near him. "Besides, you have things worth living for."

The Captain opened his mouth to argue but the shadow continued speaking, voice growing louder and reverberating off of the ice, allowing everyone to easily hear his speech.

"Because _they_ are counting on you." He said, gesturing to the various seals scattered around the lifeboats. "You might not think you're important, but they _do_."

The Captain turned around caught sight of all the wide, worried eyes staring up at him. Obviously his crew had been more than a little worried about him, even if they knew he could not drown. Guilt rose up in him and the feeling only grew worse when the seal closest to him shuffled forward and gently nuzzled one of his fins.

"Maybe you're right." He relented, that sorrowful look in his eyes lightening up just a bit as he looked at the hatted child. "Thanks for saving me, pup."

"Now, I don't remember seeing you on the boarding list." The Captain said, turning to face the shadow once again. "Just who are you?"

"Uh, well, you see," Snatcher stuttered, glancing left and right as he tried to figure out an escape plan. "I think I left the stove on back home!"

With that he rocketed up into the air, ignoring the sputtered shouting coming from the walrus and the startled yelps that came from the other passengers. Only the hatted child was left unaffected by his sudden departure, having seen the move coming from a mile away.

Hat Kid stood at the edge of the lifeboat, energetically waving to the departing shadow. "BYE BFF, I'LL SEE YOU LATER!"

"I'M NOT YOUR FRIEND, BRAT!"

Hat Kid giggled once again, a mischievous smirk appearing on her face as she considered what to say next. "OKAY, BYE DAD!"

Needless to say Snatcher soon found himself joining the sunken ship at the bottom of the ocean floor, having fallen out of the air in pure shock when he heard the hatted child's words. Now he sat on a piece of the wreckage, arms crossed as he considered all that had just happened.

He had snuck aboard a cruise ship in a crate, failed to complete his goals of tormenting everyone on the ship and stealing their souls, _saved_ the very people he had planned to terrorize, _and_ apparently gotten a _daughter_ in the form of his enemy in the process!

 _What a vacation!_

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 **AN: Mmmmmm yes that sweet angst mixed with fluff, how glorious.**

 **Anyways I hope you guys enjoyed!**

 **\- ImmortalCoelacanth**


End file.
